EBay has been looking to challenge Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) at every front since the turn of the 21st century. In 2002, eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY) introduced a new pricing strategy aimed at taking a slice of retail sales from under Amazon. In the present day, the rivalry is a notch higher as the companies gear up for what might be termed the biggest shopping holiday for online retailers.
Prime Day vs Crash Sale
Every year since 2015, Amazon holds a Prime Day sale where Amazon Prime members get to access huge discounts on favorite products. The event attracts huge crowds of buyers and the retail giant earns huge sums in revenue.
But the event comes with its own challenges. Given the huge number of customers and page visitors, there are cases of technical hitches. In 2018, the event was marred with issues like power failures and page errors which irked many customers.
As another instance in the eBay-Amazon rivalry, eBay revealed its intention to hold a Crash Sale event. This is simply an answer to Amazon’s Prime Sales and it intends to capitalize on the craze that comes with this period.
While Amazon’s Prime Day is exclusive to a select group of its users, Crash Sales will be available to all members. Further, eBay’s event is set to last for three weeks, unlike Amazon’s which, for the first this year, is going for two days. Usually, Prime Day is a one day event.
Taking a dig at Amazon
In the past, eBay and Amazon have been ‘civil’ in their struggle for customers and higher revenues. They have implemented different strategies aimed at getting ahead and netting more sales. On this front, Amazon has been winning.
To be sure, Amazon dwarfs eBay in earnings. Notably, Amazon earned $72.4 billion in Q4 2018 compared to a just $1.2 billion for its competitor. Perhaps this is why eBay is taking a direct dig at Amazon in this year’s Prime Day event.
While introducing Crash Sale, eBay said its event, unlike that of competitors, will run for three weeks. Further, eBay promised great deals on items which shoppers want. This could be a direct jab at issues which are common on Prime Day where customer lament lack of interesting deals from things they might want to have.
